Since sketchy details were released last winter, relatively little news has emerged on either the progress or the content of the proposed Park Russia near Moscow. Now, Park World can reveal, the celebrated French park Puy du Fou has been selected as an advisor to the project.
Scheduled to open in stages beginning in 2016, Park Russia will be a massive 1,000 hectare resort showcasing Russian culture and history, featuring an amusement park, waterpark, safari park, high end circus, botanical gardens, golf course, race track, cinema, concert hall, exhibition centre, hotel, residential and shopping facilities. A key part of the project will be a miniature replica of Russia and its regions, together with a city craftsmen and various museums. It is within the latter components that Puy Du Fou, famed for its live entertainment spectaculars celebrating its local Vendeé region, is expected to provide its expertise.
Le Puy Du Fou is part of the consortium led by real estate advisory firm Cushman & Wakefield, which won an international competition to provide the park’s concept design. A total of 26 applications were received, the winner chosen after scrutiny from national and regional government and a jury of advisors.
Established in a remote part of central/western France in 1978, the Thea Classic Award-winning Puy du Fou has grown to become one of the country’s top three theme parks, attracting 1.7 million visitors in 2013. The venue features no rides, instead wow-ing its guests with the night-time spectacular Cinéscénie and the Grand Parc, featuring an additional 60 shows, themed villages, restaurants and hotels. Cinéscénie alone features over 3,000 performers, many of them volunteers from the local region. Four years ago, the park established an international consulting arm, which led to the development of last season’s Raveleijn show at Efteling in the Netherlands (running again in 2014). As well as Russia, potential projects are also in the pipeline in China.
